STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's centre-right government has
chosen four bidders in its auction of Vin & Sprit that will be
allowed to perform due diligence of the Absolut vodka maker,
business daily Dagens Industri reported on Sunday.

The four selected bidders -- Fortune Brands Inc <FO.N>,
Pernod Ricard SA <PERP.PA>, Bacardi and private equity group
EQT in cooperation with investment firm Investor AB <INVEb.ST>
-- have been widely seen as the front-runners to buy Vin &
Sprit.

The newspaper, which did not disclose its sources, said the
four bidders would proceed to more closely scrutinize Vin &
Sprit in a due diligence process before finalizing their
offers.

Vin & Sprit is to be sold as part of Sweden's biggest-ever
privatization, which also includes stakes in telecom operator
TeliaSonera AB <TLSN.ST>, Nordea Bank AB <NDA.ST>, mortgage
lender SBAB <SBAB.UL> and real estate firm Vasakronan
AB<VASA.UL>.

ADVERTISEMENT

The government this week sold its entire holding of just
under 7 percent of shares in bourse operator OMX AB <OMX.ST>
which is set to be acquired by Borse Dubai as part of a broader
agreement with U.S. exchange operator Nasdaq Stock Market Inc